Dangerous Miracle : A natural history of antibiotics – and how we burned through them

'Brilliant' TIM SPECTOR 'Excellent' HENRY MARSH'Thrilling' VENKI RAMAKRISHNANAntibiotics: one of humanity’s greatest achievements – but invented by microbes. An epic narrative of discovery and innovation – but also of extraction and exploitation. This is the spellbinding story of how we have burned through the fossil fuels of medicine. Since their advent, antibiotics have saved millions of lives, marking one of the greatest medical advances in our history.

Dangerous Miracle weaves together the grand arc of the evolution of antibiotics over millions of years with a history of the past century: first as we mined the earth for naturally occurring antibiotic molecules, then as we learned to synthesise our own. But like fossil fuels, antibiotics are a finite resource which we’ve regarded as a cheap, everlasting fuel.

They are unlike other drugs: every time we use them we increase the possibility of antibiotic resistance emerging, risking their future effectiveness.

If we want antibiotics to have a future, we need to prepare to adapt. And fast. Rich with pioneering characters, great breakthroughs and grave risks, Dangerous Miracle is a grand drama of science, history and politics.

It is a revelatory account of the miraculous history and uncertain future of antibiotics from a gifted writer. ‘An enjoyable and absolutely essential read. The next global pandemic might not be a virus at all – it could be a drug-resistant bacterium, as antibiotics stop working and common infections turn deadly.

As Shaw passionately argues in this compelling history, we urgently need a new approach’KATE BINGHAM‘Eye-opening and thrilling … This is not only an important history you never knew, it is also a vital call to arms to change the way that new drugs are discovered.

Essential reading for everybody’MATTHEW COBB